Stars, Stripes, and Big Mouth Speedsters
by Self-Inflicted Insanity
Summary: Tommy is officially introduced to America Chavez. They don't get along that well.


**AN: Because I wanted to write something with Miss America. Because she's awesome. And we never got to see her and Tommy interact.  
**

**Takes place at least six months after the end of _YOUNG AVENGERS (2013). _**

* * *

**Stars, Stripes, and Big Mouth Speedsters**

_6 months ago... _

**Billy Kaplan: **Hi America! U rly need 2 drop by Earth-616 sometime so we can catch up.

_6 months ago... _

**Billy Kaplan: **AYT? It's been days since I texted u.

_5 months ago... _

**Billy Kaplan: **It's been weeks now.

_4 months ago... _

**Billy Kaplan: **Months since we heard from u. Getting worried.

_3 months ago... _

**Billy Kaplan: **America?

_3 months ago..._

**Billy Kaplan: **OMG ur dead.

_2 months ago... _

**Billy Kaplan: **Ur rly dead.

_1 month ago..._

**Miss America: **AAK.

_1 month ago..._

**Billy Kaplan: **TG ur alive! U need 2 drop by &amp; say hi!

_1 week ago... _

**Billy Kaplan: **OMG u died again.

_Secs ago... _

**Miss America: **Breakfast Joe's Diner? 8?

_Secs ago..._

**Billy Kaplan: **AWESO. SLAP. I'll bring my BF and bro. SYS!

* * *

It was 7:45 in the morning.

"Hey guys!" Billy said excitedly as he came into the kitchen, waving his phone in the air. Teddy was inspecting the contents of the fridge and Tommy was leaning against the counter, spoon poised above an empty bowl. "Don't eat breakfast! America finally texted back!" He grinned. "We're gonna meet her at Joe's in fifteen minutes!"

"It's about time," Teddy said, smiling as he closed the fridge and walked over to wrap an arm around his boyfriend. "It's been how long since we've seen her?"

"Like over six months," Billy said. He looked over at his brother. "You're coming with us, Tommy. You've got no choice. I don't think you've officially met America, and you need to."  
"I did too!"

"That breakfast after the New Year's party didn't count."

"Ugh. You tell me we're going out to breakfast _now?" _Tommy complained, turning his empty bowl upside-down. "I just finished eating!"

"Then go run it off," Billy suggested.

"Fine," Tommy said loftily, quickly cleaning his bowl and spoon, drying them, and putting them away. "I was planning on lapping the earth today a few times anyway."

There was a _Whoosh! _and the speedster was gone.

Billy regarded the space that Tommy had been occupying, expression thoughtful. "How well do you think he and America will get along?"

"If didn't kill Loki after hanging out with the Mischief God for months, I don't think she'll kill Tommy after hanging out with him for an hour or two," Teddy said.

"Yeah, but that was _Loki,"_ Billy pointed out. "Loki actually has self-preservation skills." He sighed, shaking his head, dark hair swishing across his face. "This is _Tommy _we're talking about, and the way he seems to purposefully try to annoy the hell out of incredibly dangerous people, I'm entirely unconvinced that he isn't suicidal."

* * *

Billy and Teddy arrived at the diner at 7:57, sitting down at a booth to wait for the rest of their company to show up. They took the time to browse the menu, even though they'd pretty much had it memorized by now and knew exactly what they were going to get.

America arrived at exactly 8:00.

"Hey," she greeted curtly, sitting down and glancing at the menu they'd grabbed for her, though she didn't open it up. "I though you were bringing your brother as well. Have you ordered yet?"

"Hi America!" Billy grinned. "Tommy should be here soon. And no, we haven't ordered yet." He looked at his menu again. "French toast or French toast? I can't decide."

"Hi America," Teddy said, smiling at her, before turning to address his boyfriend. "Pancakes. Pancakes are better."

Billy snorted. "This is the only thing we disagree on."

"Sorry I'm late!" Tommy said, breezing in to sit down next to America, across the table from Billy and Teddy, his niveous hair a windblown mess. "But I had to finish my fifth lap. Around the world. Now I'm hungry again." He glanced at the girl sitting next to him.

She had warm brown skin and eyes, her hair a thick mass of dark brown curls that tumbled to her shoulders. She was wearing black short-shorts that showed off her smooth, muscled legs, an American flag themed jacket, and gold hoop earrings.

"Tommy, meet America Chavez, aka Miss America," Billy introduced, grinning as he gestured between them. "America, meet Tommy Shepherd, aka Speed."

"We've met," America said coolly.

"Hi," Tommy as he gave her his best, most charming smile. "You're really hot, you know that?"

Her expression was lofty as she regarded him with a look that was just bordering on a glare. "Let's make it clear right now. I'm not interested. And if you continue trying to flirt with me, I will kick your head clear to the moon."

"What?" Tommy said indignantly, holding up his hands, "I can't give a hot girl a compliment? I was trying to be nice!"

America smirked at him. "I don't know you, but even _I_ can tell that being nice doesn't suit you."

"Okay, fine," Tommy said, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes at her. "And for the record, Kate is prettier than you."

This just made America's smirk twitch higher.

"You have your orders ready?" said the waiter as he came up to their table, notepad and pen in hand.

"French toast!" Tommy said immediately.

* * *

After the waiter left with their orders, Tommy remarked, "I'm pretty sure French toast isn't actually French. And I'm pretty sure French fries aren't, either."

"Doesn't matter," Billy told him with a shrug. "French toast is awesome."

"Pancakes are better," Teddy said earnestly.

"Shut up now, Tee," Billy warned him, though he was grinning playfully.

"Hey," Tommy said, turning his attention to America, expression curious. "Why 'Miss America?'"

"My name's America," she supplied dryly, raising an unimpressed eyebrow.

Tommy's eyes widened. "Really?!" he exclaimed. "America is actually your real-real name? It's not just a shorter version of your codename that you use all the time to be mysterious so people don't actually know your actual real name?"

She just looked at him levelly.

"Huh," Tommy said, taking that as a 'yes,' though it was probably more a 'how much of an idiot are you?' "Okay then. So your name's America Chavez, yeah? Shouldn't you be Miss Chavez, then, if you're going by your name? Don't people usually stick 'Miss' or 'Mister' in front of their last names?"

"Shuddup, boca grande," America said, crossing her arms, a note of tacit threat in her voice.

"'Miss America,' sounds better," Billy told his brother quickly.

"That's true," Tommy acknowledged, nodding his head. He glanced around the diner. "When's our breakfast getting here? Man, I'm hungry! Waiting like this _sucks." _

"So, America," Teddy said, turning to the young woman and ignoring the speedster, "what have you been up to for the past few months?"

"Oh, you know," she shrugged, "saving worlds. Kicking butt." She raised an eyebrow. "You?"

"There hasn't been anything that dramatic recently," Teddy said, smiling slightly. "But yeah, we've been beating up bad guys when they show up, and trying not to die of boredom when they don't."

"Trying not to kill each_other_ out of boredom, more like," Billy said as he narrowed his eyes at Tommy.

The white-haired teen had grabbed a straw at some point and was now dipping it in his water glass, putting a finger over the top of the straw, pulling the straw out of the water and tilting his head back to lift it over his mouth, removing his finger from the top to let the water spill down between his lips.

"So, America," the speedster said casually, dipping the straw back into his water, "how long are you staying on this earth?"

"Not long," she answered, eying him suspiciously.

He grinned at her. "You got time to hit a club with me?"

Her faced darkened and her fists clenched. "I _told _you I wasn't interested, and I'm _not _going to tell you again. Next time, I'm punching your face clean off."

"No, I didn't mean it like that," Tommy said quickly, shaking his head. "I just meant that—"

"_Tommy..." _Billy warned, glancing at his brother, and then at the about-to-be-snarling America, and then back at his brother who still seemed quite unaware of the imminent danger he was in.

"—if you're staying, if you want to dance to some loud music and party, I know some great clubs," Tommy continued, undeterred. "You like girls, right?"

America was glaring lasers at him now, cracking her knuckles.

"Because a lot of really hot girls go to this club I know, and—oy!"

America's fist flew towards his face, but Tommy shot up a hand to catch it, saying, "Why are you trying to punch me? What did I do? I didn't do anything!"

Billy was watching at the irate America with wide eyes. "Please don't destroy this diner!" he pleaded. "I _like _this diner!"

America glanced at Billy, and around them at the rest of the diner, and then at Tommy. She jerked her fist out of his grasp. "Boca grande," America said warningly, "you really need to shut up."

"Okay," Tommy said. "Shutting up. Right now. Shutting up, that's it, no more talking. None at all. Right now. This is the last of the talking. Shutting up now." He glanced around. His eyes lit up. "Oh hey, looks like breakfast's here!"

A moment later the waiter arrived at the table with their plates of food, and the teens eagerly dug in.

"Here," Billy said to his boyfriend, grinning and taking the piece of French toast on his fork, holding it out. "Try it, and be proven wrong about pancakes being better."

Grinning, Teddy leaned forward and ate the piece of syrupy toast from Billy's fork. He hummed thoughtfully. "Nope, pancakes are still better," he said, taking a piece of pancake from his plate and holding it out for Billy. "Taste and see the truth."

After eating the piece of pancake, Billy shook his head, saying, "No way, Ted. French toast is _so _much better."

"I actually have to agree on Billy with this one," Tommy said, waving a piece of his own toast in the air, before promptly sticking it in his mouth. "How about you, America?"

"You're all idiots," America told them, not even glancing up from her own breakfast, which consisted of an omelet. "You're almost as bad as Loki."

"Yeah, he was obsessed with bacon," Billy nodded.

Tommy wiped his mouth with a napkin, having just finished his breakfast. "So, America," he said, turning to the girl next to him again, ignoring her warning glare. "Have you seen Kate recently?"

"Maybe," she said after a moment. "Why?"

"Because it kind of seemed like, at the New Year's party, that there was some interest between you two, and since Kate has been turning me down every time I ask her to go out and saying that she's maybe kind of with someone, but I know she's not with Noh-Varr anymore, I was wondering if you two were—?"

"Waiter?" America interrupted, casually raising a hand to flag the man down while keeping her gaze firmly on the speedster, standing up. "I'm good for the damages."

"Hey, I was just asking a question!" Tommy protested, raising his palms in front of him. "What, I can't even ask a simple—!"

America's fist hit where Tommy's face would have been, had he not moved slightly to the side and dodged the blow.

Her foot came at him and Tommy's green eyes widened. "Okay, I get the hint. I'm outta here!"

_Whoosh! _Gone was the speedster, and, still seething slightly, America sat back down.

Billy rubbed the back of his neck, looking apologetically at her. "Sorry about that..." he said. "I guess I probably shouldn't have brought him with us, but..."

Seeming to have calmed down, America waved a hand dismissively, turning her attention back to her breakfast. "Whatever," she said.  
There were a few minutes of silence as they all focused on their meals.

"So, honestly now," Teddy ventured finally, "how've you been, America?"

"And are you actually with Kate?" Billy asked.

Teddy and America turned to look at him disbelievingly.

"What?" Billy said defensively, widening his brown eyes. "I think it was actually a fair question!"


End file.
